Worth a Thousand Words
by Laury the Latrator
Summary: "It's amazing how much Beck smiles when Jade's not around." Jade comes across some pictures of Beck on the slap and faces an uncomfortable truth. Bade one-shot. A companion to the Pix on TheSlap in "Robbie's Car and Dale Squires"


_Honestly_, Jade thought as she scrolled through The Slap (dot com implied), _it's amazing what people incorrectly assume I want to know about their pointless lives. Sikowitz's mother is banned from Vegas. Wow, that has to be one nasty old lady. Sinjin lost a raisin in that mass he calls hair. Huh. Why doesn't that surprise me?_

She paused as she noticed her boyfriend's latest post. Mexico or Canada? Well, she hated heat and drunk frat guys so Canada seemed preferable. There'd be a longer drive of course, but her and Beck in his truck for a long stretch of time always got interesting. They could stop in a motel, get a room. Just one bed of course, two would be a frivolous waste of money. It must be colder up there, no doubt they'd have to snuggle up for warmth…

With this thought (and several increasingly naughty others) she shot a glance at the RV's tiny bathroom. Beck would be a few minutes, she could still hear the shower running. Biting her lip, Jade clicked his profile. She was halfway through writing a very racy comment about bearskin rugs when her eyes caught the picture of Beck and Robbie on a disgusting looking car hood. Right, he'd mentioned offering to fix that junker up. Intrigued, she clicked it. Her head tilted as she took in his appearance. He had a rag tossed over his shoulder, his dirty boots propped up on the grill. He was scowling a little, his deep black hair swept to the side. Beck was clearly flaunting his smoldering, indifferent, bad boy attitude. But it was his muscled arms and well defined chest that really grabbed her attention.

Jade flipped to the next pic. Woah. Beck's butt. That's… nice. Her eyes roamed indulgently for a moment before snapping out of it. She continued until she found another of her boyfriend. Her heart thumped. He was smiling. A brilliant grin that truly shone. His eyes were crinkled in that carefree way. She let herself give a soft smile in return and observed more about this wonderful snapshot. That pink rag was back, on the same shoulder. Somehow it fit the tough guy image the grey 'wife beater' gave off. That lead her to his chest. Jade knew from hands on experience how toned he was, but seeing it through the shirt just further made her appreciate what she had. Yet… his hotness wasn't what she liked most about the picture. He looked… young. Innocent. Happy. It gave her a warm tingly feeling all through her body. Her gaze lifted to the caption.

_"It's amazing how much Beck smiles when Jade's not around."_

Now she felt cold.

The shower shut off, and she hastily x-ed out the window and shut her laptop, sitting up and affecting her usual air.

"Hey babe," was the only warning before the wet boyfriend in question plopped down on the bed beside her, splattering her in the process with water. Jade shot him an irritated glare and surreptitiously took in his appearance. He'd slicked his soaked hair back, but some strands had already fallen in his face from the leap. He was wearing loose sweatpants, but his t-shirt was sticking to his skin. Her mind flitted back to The Slap and she looked away. "Sorry," Beck added with a sheepish grin.

"Whatever," She snappishly replied, inwardly cringing at her own overly harsh tone. He merely leveled a curious expression at her.

"You okay, Jade? You seem irritated." His hand brushed hers tentatively. She could feel the new callouses forming on his fingertips and tried to exhale her frustration (a tactic that only worked with him). Feeling marginally calmer, Jade intertwined their fingers, her wordless communication of thanks and assurance.

"How was working with Shapiro?" She asked instead. "Was it as awkward as could be expected?" Thankfully, Beck allowed the subject change, and his mouth quirked in a slightly bemused grin.

"Well, Robbie is absolutely hopeless when it comes to human interaction, you know that much. He made some nice compliments about my jeans," Her mind went back to that picture of his ass and couldn't help but agree, "Started stripping off his shirt, and just generally made a fool of himself in front of a couple girls."

"Girls?" She predictably stalls on. "What were 'girls' doing there?" Beck's other hand reached up to sweep through his still damp hair, a clear sign she wouldn't like the answer.

"We were doing this in the school parking lot and, uh, these, these girls came to… watch?" He finished uncertainly, as even he must know that wasn't their true motive. Jade raised an eyebrow, as he would undoubtedly go on in the face of her silence. "I didn't really want them there! Robbie told them they could stay, and how else is he going to meet females? I was only eye candy." This time she sent him a real withering glare, because as true as that statement is she doesn't like how aware he is of his appeal. Beck just shrugged and turned on his side towards her, moving a bit closer in the process. "It's a shame," He continued, staring somewhere around her elbow. "Robbie could do better. Those girls are… materialistic. It's dumb, what's attractive nowadays." Jade softened, her hand tightening around his briefly. She knew, for all his outwardly wonderful qualities, he valued substance above all else. It was why, he claimed, he loved her, and no one else.

Again, she thought back to Shapiro's insensitive caption. She sighed, noticing as she did that Beck was watching her in concern.

Without looking down, she told him, "You look nice when you smile. You should do it more." _I can act with the best of them, but when I try to be sincere with my boyfriend I end up sounding like a robot_, Jade berated herself. He was strangely silent at her unusual declaration. His free hand moved to run up and down her arm, making her break out in goosebumps under his touch.

"Do you like me when I smile?" He pressed quietly, his thumb still doing illicit things along her skin. She took a shuddering breath in.

"Yes," Jade admitted. She watched with fascination as his lips turned up, pleased and relieved it seemed by her answer. He let go of her hand and instead gently guided her down to meet him. As they kissed, slow and sweet, she could still feel his smile hovering around the edges of their mouths. She drew back, hovering over him, wearing an intent expression as she studied him. The waves of chocolate that were her hair brushed against his face. His fingers were curling and uncurling the short strands on her neck almost absentmindedly. That thumb was still tracing the lines of her arm.

And Beck was grinning up at her, wide and glistening, carefree and unbelievably _happy_. How could she be responsible for so much joy?

"Love you," He murmured before pulling her into another kiss. This time, when they parted, Jade was smiling too.

* * *

**I really shouldn't be writing so many one-shots. I do have a life... *sigh* who am I kidding?**

**Anyway, this is just my take on Jade's reaction to the latest set of Pix on the slap (you'll want to see them, they _really_ do Avan justice). I think Jade really does want him to be happy, even though she most wants him to be with her, and her insecurities have a hard time believing that both are possible. I also imagine that Beck doesn't smile as much around her (if we are to believe Robbie's caption) not because she doesn't make him happy, but because he doesn't think she'd like him to smile. I had this other drabble in my head where Jade complains to Beck about how she hates other people's happiness and despises cheery smiles. So, to make her happy, Beck tries to conceal every time she makes him grin. We do see that in the show, how when Jade says something funny or is acting outrageously jealous, he'll duck his head so his smile is partially hidden. Be on the look out when you watch, I caught it in Robbarazzi and FtFO (just off the top of my head).**

**Sorry. I tend to over think things I guess. I take fanfiction as an exercise in psychological profiling so I like to justify all of my observations. But enough about me being a nerd.**

**How did you like it? Funny? Sweet? Brimming with sexual energy? :P just kidding.**

**Seriously though, review.**

**Or else.**

**_Laury_.**


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